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Rh of Darien,while Nicuesa obtained the countries from Darien to Cape Gracias a Dios with the name of Castilla de Oro. Both expeditions left San Lucar in 1509 to recruit more adventurers in Hispaniola, where they had serious difficulty regarding the possession of Jamaica, and Ojeda left first for the continent. Nieuesa, who possessed more ample means, left a few days later with a powerful expedition, and touching the coast near the present site of Carthagena,, found Ojeda besieged by a numerous army of Indians. After assisting his rival to defeat these he sailed again in the direction of Veragua. A storm separated the convoy, and Nieuesa with his vessel was wrecked on an unknown coast, where he suffered great hardships. Messengers that he sent along the coast met his lieutenant. Lope Olano, who had landed with three vessels farther south, but, seeing a good opportunity to usurp the command, the latter pretended to disbelieve what they said and continued his explorations. Nieuesa was now forced to march along the coast, continually harassed by the natives, till finally he met Olano near Porto Bello. The latter's vessels had been wrecked, and he had lost several hundred men in warfare with the Indians. Nieuesa pardoned his lieutenant and they continued their march, but soon provisions began to fail, and finally, worn out with fatigue, they arrived at a port that had been called by Columbus Bastimentos, where Nieuesa, disheartened, said, "Let us stop, in the name of God." There they founded a small settlement which, accordingly, they called Nombre de Dios. Meanwhile, in the middle of 1510, a second expedition, fitted out on Nicuesa's account in Spain under Rodrigo de Colmenares, arrived in Ojeda's new settlement, Santa Maria de la Antigua, and. finding that after the latter's departure for Spain there had been differences between his partner Enciso and Balboa {q. v.), Colmenares was persuaded by some of the colonists to go in search of Nieuesa and bring him to the new colony. In this manner the latter was finally relieved, and arrived on 15 Nov., 1510, in Antigua ; but Balboa, who had arrested Enciso, suspecting the intentions of Nieuesa, imprisoned him on a charge of having sacrificed many lives, and finally obliged him to set sail for Spain in a s'mall vessel with a crew of only seventeen men. He sailed on 1 March, 1511, and was never heard of again.

NICUM, John, clergyman, b. in Winnenden, Wilrtemberg, Germany, 6 Jan., 1851. He received his preparatory training in the Latin-school of his native place, and after coming to this country was graduated at Muhlenberg college, Allentown, Pa., in 1873, and at the Lutheran theological seminary, Philadelphia, in 1876. He has been pastor in Frockville, Pa., in 1876-'8; Frankford, Philadelphia, in 1878-'80; Syracuse, N. Y., in 1880-'7; and in the latter year he accepted a call to St. John's Lutheran church, Rochester, N. Y. Since 1884 he has been president of the fourth conference of the New York ministerium. Since 1886 he has been German secretary of the general council of the Evangelical Lutheran church in North America, and in 1887 he was elected a member of the general council's board of German home missions. He is a frequent contributor to Lutheran and other periodicals, and has published "Weihnachts-An-dacht" (Reading, Pa., 1880); "Gleichniss-Reden Jesu" (1884); "Laws of the State of New York relating to Churches " (Syracuse, N. Y., 1884); "Reformations - Album " (Reading, 1885) ; and "The Doctrinal Development of the New York Ministerium" (Philadelphia, 1887). He has in press a "History of the New York Ministerium."

NIEBUHR, Sigismund (ne-boor), German navigator, b. in Neu-Breisach in 1631; d. in Amsterdam in 1699. He entered the service of the states-general of Holland, and in 1675 was sent to South America on a voyage of exploration. After stopping at Rio Janeiro, he sailed along the coast to the Strait of Lemaire, made soundings to ascertain the depth of the ocean, and prepared a chart that afterward proved valuable. He was shipwrecked in a storm off Los Reyes island, but built there a new ship and determined the exact location of Los Bajos de Esteban, which had hitherto been disastrous to navigators. He located also on his chart several dangerous rocks, and, landing in Tierra del Fuego, had friendly intercourse with the natives, persuading two of them to accompany him to Holland. During the voyage he was obliged to put into Guiana for repairs, and he entered the Zuyder Zee in October, 1677. His narrative was published under the title &ldquo;Reisebeschryving in de Straat van Lemaire, tot Kaap Hoorn, en langs de kust van Brazilie, on der nomen door de Loods Niebuhr in dienst van de Edele Heren der General Staten&rdquo; (Amsterdam, 1678).

NIEL, Frédéric Guillaume Amédée Ferdinand (neel), West Indian geographer, b. near Saint Pierre, Martinique, in 1729; d. in Versailles in 1791. He entered the colonial administration and held several offices. In 1761 he undertook a survey of Martinique, and he was afterward sent on several missions to Santo Domingo, Guadeloupe, and South America. He was appointed in 1782 assistant librarian of the city of Versailles, but resigned in 1790, and, returning to Martinique, was chosen delegate to the constituent assembly. He was one of the founders in Paris of the club &ldquo;Les amis des noirs,&rdquo; and, although opposed to a general emancipation of the slaves, advocated a policy of gradual enfranchisement, and published several pamphlets in support of his ideas. Among his works are &ldquo;Description de la côte orientale de l'île de la Martinique&rdquo; (Paris, 1763); &ldquo;Atlas pour servir aux marins qui prennent le débouquement de Saint Domingue&rdquo; (1770); &ldquo;Le flux et le reflux de la mer sur les côtes de l'île Sainte Catherine&rdquo; (1772); &ldquo;Atlas de la côte du Maranhão&rdquo; (1775); &ldquo;De l'esclavage aux Antilles&rdquo; (1790); &ldquo;La question des esclaves&rdquo; (1791); &ldquo;Des droits du nègres&rdquo; (1791); and &ldquo;L'esclave peut-il devenir un bon citoyen?&rdquo; (1791).

NIEMCEWICZ, Julian Ursin, Count (ne-em-tsay'-vitch), Polish statesman, b. in Skoki, Lithuania, Poland, in 1757; d. in Paris, France, 21 May, 1841. He was of noble birth, entered the Lithuanian army as the adjutant of Prince Czartoryski, and in 1788 was promoted major. Being appointed a deputy to the Polish constitutional diet, he had the principal share in drawing up the constitution of 3 May, 1791, and about the same time became an editor of a popular journal called &ldquo;Gazeta Narodowa.&rdquo; After the battle of Maciejowice he was made prisoner with Kosciusko, and confined in the fortress of St. Petersburg, from which they were released on the accession of Paul in 1796. The following year he accompanied Kosciusko to this country. His handsome person, his culture, and his captivating manners at once made him a favorite in society in New York city, where he was the frequent guest of John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and other eminent men. In 1800 he married Mrs. Livingston Kean, the widow of John Kean (q. v.), a delegate from South Carolina to the Continental congress, who died in 1795. Mrs. Kean had purchased Liberty Hall, the country-seat of her uncle, Gov. William Livingston, and after her